A/N: Here it is, my main TTTE fanfiction! (Which is a bit of an AU, to be honest.) This story takes place sometime during Season 22, and I might have rewritten some of the ending of Season 21, after the time when James crashes into Tidmouth Sheds.

!Warning! This fanfiction is rated T for bullying, descriptions of sensory overload, flashbacks involving extreme physical and emotional abuse, mentions of abusive relationship, mentions of death, heavily implied OC death, mentions of torturous death, and a close scrape with said death.

Any asterisks (*) indicate that there is a note at the end of the chapter pertaining to that particular sentence.

It was a pleasant evening on the Island of Sodor. Rebecca had just finished pulling the Express for the day and was heading back to Tidmouth Sheds.

As she puffed through Wellsworth, a whistle she'd never heard before sounded in the air, and a high-pitched voice yelled out.

Rebecca screeched to a halt and narrowly missed colliding into an engine that was coming up from Edward's branch line.

When Rebecca opened her eyes again, she saw that the engine was a petite female tender engine with iridescent paint that changed different colors at every curve and corner.

"Sorry! I'm sorry! I wasn't paying attention, I'm so sorry…" The engine's eyes darted everywhere, except for in Rebecca's direction.

The big yellow engine smiled reassuringly, seeing that the engine was visibly anxious. "It's alright. Just remember to pay attention to your surroundings and to the signals, especially when you are moving." She paused. "I've never seen you before. Are you new to the Island of Sodor?"

The engine looked at Rebecca, but still avoided eye contact. "Y-yes, I just arrived here a half hour ago, and I have no idea where I'm supposed to go or what my job is going to be… You see, this is my first time being outside of the factory where I was made. I… I don't know what to do from here…"

Rebecca admired the engine's shiny paint. "And you're a rainbow engine?"

"Oh… ah… I don't even know if I have an actual color at all… It seems to change every time I move."

And she steamed forward a little to watch her paint shimmer with little rainbows in some places, a colorless steel sparkling underneath it all. "They call me an 'iridescent engine'... I-I don't even know what that means."

The engine's driver poked his head out of her cab. "It just means that your livery appears to change color at different angles." He held up a piece of paper and scanned its contents. "Let's see here… Um, we need to report to a 'Sir Topham Hatt'." The driver looked over at Rebecca. "Do you happen to know where we would be able to find him?"

"Oh, yes!" Rebecca began to puff forward. "He often travels around his railway, making sure that everything is running smoothly, but he can usually be found operating it from his office at Knapford Station."

"Great. Would you mind showing us the way there? Neither I nor Michaela know our way around here yet."

Rebecca smiled. "Of course! I just barely finished with my duties for the day. I'll lead you right to it!"

As the two girls puffed along, Rebecca struck up a conversation with her new friend. "So, your name is Michaela? That's a lovely name."

"Oh… thank you." The iridescent engine stared down at the track. "My driver says that it means 'gift from God'... or something like that, anyway."

"Cool! I'm Rebecca. I help out with the Express and also pull goods."

Michaela's eyes lifted up and stared off into the horizon, watching as the sun set over the distant sea. "I wonder what I'm supposed to be doing… I hope I'll be comfortable with whatever it is."

Rebecca thought that was a slightly strange comment, but she ignored it and tried to be encouraging. "If you ever need help, you can always ask the other engines for advice. Most of the engines here on Sodor are friendly and more than willing to lend a helping hand."

Michaela smiled. "Okay, thanks. I'll try to remember that."

When the two engines finally steamed into Knapford, Sir Topham Hatt came out to meet them.

"Ah, excellent. You must be Michaela, the new engine that I requested from the Mainland."

"Um… y-yes, I suppose so." Her eyes avoided those of everybody that so much as glanced in her direction. "Please, sir, where am I going to work?"

"I'll show you." Sir Topham Hatt turned to Rebecca, and thanked her for helping Michaela find the station, then he climbed up into the iridescent engine's cab.

"Guess I'd better get back to the sheds, then." Rebecca smiled at her new friend and gave her a chirp of her whistle.

Michaela winced at the sound, but whistled back with a friendly smile. "Bye… And thanks for helping me. S-sorry about almost bumping into you earlier."

The cheerful yellow engine chuckled. "It's okay. Bye, now!"

Michaela watched Rebecca go with an anxious look. She still didn't know anybody very well, and now she was about to find out what her first job was.

Sir Topham Hatt spoke with her driver as they pulled out of Knapford Station, and they began to head north onto Duck's Branch Line, also known as the "Little Western". Michaela listened in silence as they puffed along, observing her surroundings and perking up whenever she saw an animal of any kind.

She became so absorbed in watching a bird flying overhead that she didn't hear her driver calling her name until he sighed impatiently and spoke a little louder. "Michaela!"

The iridescent engine jumped, and her eyes darted around anxiously. "Huh? W-what?"

Her driver patted her side. "Didn't you hear our conversation just now? I asked if you liked the sound of your new job."

Michaela's face froze. "I… I didn't know I was supposed to be listening. I'm sorry, what was it again?"

Sir Topham Hatt spoke to her. "You are going to be taking up shunting duties at Arlesburgh Yards as your main job. Occasionally, you might be needed elsewhere, but for now you will work at the yard until you get used to your new responsibilities."

"Oh!" Michaela smiled. "Yes, Sir Cumference!"

Michaela's driver suddenly choked, her fireman frantically attempted to disguise his laughter with a fit of forced coughing, and the Fat Controller was stunned for a moment.

Michaela began to panic. "W-w-what? Isn't that your… D-did I get your name wrong?"

Much to her relief (and confusion), Sir Topham Hatt responded with a chuckle, "Oh, no, Michaela. Well… I mean, that isn't my name, but… it's true, really." He patted his stomach. "I have been getting a little more rounded lately, and it's quite obvious."

Michaela didn't understand what he meant, but before she could ask him, she spotted a green pannier tank engine coming towards them on the opposite track as they entered Tidmouth Hault.

The iridescent engine gulped anxiously and whispered to the humans riding in her cab, "Um… We are going the right way… right?"

Sir Topham Hatt chuckled. "Of course we are! In fact, one of the engines you're going to be working alongside from now on is coming this way right now!"

He leaned out of Michaela's cab and waved to the green engine. "Hello there, Duck! About to turn in for the night?"

The pannier smiled politely. "Yes, sir, unless you have another assignment for me?"

The Fat Controller patted Michaela's side. "Just a few minutes of your time. This here is Michaela, the new engine that will be assisting you on the Little Western. She will mainly be shunting up at Arlesburgh Yards and any other yard on this branch line that she is needed at."

Michaela froze up with anxiety for a moment before smiling nervously at the other engine. "Hi…"

Thankfully, he didn't seem to be bothered by the way she was acting. "Hello, Michaela. I'm Duck, and I run this branch line. It's good to have you here to help us; Oliver and I have needed someone to organize the shunting yards for a while now. Order and efficiency are vital on the Little Western, just as they were back in the day on the Great Western Railway."

Michaela had no idea what he was talking about, but she pretended that she did and tried to put on a moderate face. "Great. When do I start?"

Sir Topham Hatt responded. "Actually, since it's getting rather late… Duck, how about you and I introduce Michaela to the other engines that she will be working alongside for now, and then you can show her around first thing in the morning? I think she'll be ready to get to work after that."

Duck smiled. "Yes, sir! The sheds where we sleep are right this way, if you'll follow me, Michaela."

The iridescent engine smiled nervously and gulped as she switched onto the track that led to the sheds and followed the pannier tank engine.

The sheds looked very much like the ones at Tidmouth, with a turntable out front, and six berths inside the building for the engines that worked on the Little Western.

As Michaela gazed in wonder at her new home, she suddenly heard a whistle nearby that sounded similar to Duck's, but was at a lower pitch. A green tank engine pulled up next to them on another track that also led to the sheds. Coupled up behind him was a gray brake van with a rectangular face.

Duck smiled when he saw the engine and the brake van. "Hello, Oliver and Toad. Look who's come to help us out with shunting in the yards."

The tank engine looked over at Michaela. "Oh, are you the new engine that's come to join us Little Westerners?"

Michaela wanted to act normal like them, but she couldn't help looking away from the other engine's face and avoiding eye contact with him. "Yes… I-I'm Michaela."

The engine smiled. "Great. I'm Oliver, and this is my brake van, Toad."

"Pleased to meet you, Miss Michaela," said the brake van.

Sir Topham Hatt spoke up from inside the iridescent engine's cab. "Duck, tomorrow I would like for you both to show Michaela around the Little Western and where her new job will be."

Oliver jumped. "Oh! Sorry sir, I didn't see you there until just now."

Michaela tensed up as Sir Topham Hatt was speaking to Duck and Oliver. She had just realized that she knew next to nothing about shunting—in fact, she had only heard the term be used while some of the other engines were chatting in the factory where she had been built.

Michaela decided to speak up at that moment. "Um… sir, about my job…"

"Oh? What is it, Michaela?" asked the Fat Controller.

"Well… y-you see, I've never left the factory where I was built before until yesterday… and I haven't actually been taught anything about shunting."

Sir Topham Hatt was surprised. "Really?"

Duck and Oliver exchanged a glance. "You mean to say that nobody's ever taught you how to shunt before?" Duck asked.

Michaela squeezed her eyes shut. The stares of the other engines were getting harder for her to bear. "I'm sorry!"

Sir Topham Hatt got out of the iridescent engine's cab and walked around to face her. "Michaela, nobody is upset with you just because you don't know how to shunt. In fact, I can arrange for somebody to teach you how to do just that tomorrow—once you've learned how to find your way around, of course."

She opened one eye. "...Really?"

"Yes, of course!" Sir Topham glanced around. "Hm, let's see now… Duck and Oliver, tomorrow I would like for you both to take turns helping out Michaela. Duck, in the morning you will show her around the Little Western and then take her to Arlesburgh Yards, where you will teach her how to shunt cars.

"Oliver, you will take over in the afternoon and help Michaela with shunting until the day is over. She should have the hang of things by then and be able to do it by herself after that."

The two engines responded in unison. "Yes, sir!"

"Oh, thank you!" Michaela opened her eyes all the way and smiled. "I wish I had been taught before I came here, but… thank you!"

Duck beamed. "No problem! We're just grateful that you're here and working on our branch line."

"And it's alright that you're still a baby engine—we don't mind it if you ever need extra help from us," added Oliver.

Michaela zoned out a little as she turned over Oliver's words in her head. A "baby engine"? What on earth is that? she wondered.

The iridescent engine snapped back to attention when Sir Topham Hatt climbed back into her cab. "Well, Michaela, I hope you won't mind taking me back to Knapford. You can head back to the sheds once you've dropped me off and get rested up for your busy day tomorrow."

Michaela grinned, sure she would get his name right this time. "Sure thing, Sir Topham Fat!"

Oliver and Toad suddenly burst out laughing, then tried to stifle it; and Duck just sat staring at Michaela with a look of amusement on his face.

She could practically feel Sir Topham Hatt's surprise radiating from inside her cab. "Ahem… er… ah…"

Michaela winced. "Did… I mispronounce it again… s-sir?"

He coughed and straightened up again. "It's… 'Sir Topham Hatt', actually."

The iridescent engine grimaced. "I'm sorry, sir. I'll try and remember that. From now on, no more mispro… uh, mispronoun… uhhh…"

"Mispronunciations?" offered her driver.

"Yeah. That."

"What's a 'baby engine'?" Michaela asked her driver as they puffed back down the Little Western from dropping off the Fat Controller.

"A baby engine is what an engine is once they've been built into this world. They start to 'grow up', so to speak, when they learn for themselves and begin working. After perhaps a few weeks at the very least, they are no longer considered a baby engine and instead more like a child—or in some cases, even an adult! Those usually tend to be the more mature engines who are truly 'old souls'."

"Is that what Olive meant when he called me a 'baby engine'?"

"Yes, and I do believe his name's actually Oliver."

Michaela sighed and looked down at the tracks moving beneath her. "I'll never get it right. I can't remember anybody's names."

"You remember mine."

The iridescent looked up at the stars twinkling in the night sky and gave a brief squeal of discomfort. "Kennet, I'm new here, and I literally just met everybody. This is going to be so hard for me…"

Her lips trembled, and tears began to slide down her cheeks.

Michaela's driver stopped her on a siding and got out of the cab. He walked around to her face and gently dabbed at her tears with a rag. "There, there, Michaela. Everything'll be alright—just you wait and see. Look, you've got new friends who are more than willing to help you, and you have plenty of time to get used to your new surroundings.

"The Island of Sodor may be big, but you've been assigned to only a small part of it, and you'll be spending most of your time on this branch line. I'm sure you'll have it memorized before you know it."

Michaela opened her eyes and smiled at her driver. "...You're right, Kennet. No need to worry… right?"

"Right." He climbed back into her cab, and they started off again.

When she got back to Tidmouth Hault Sheds, there were two other engines resting inside the sheds next to Duck, Oliver, and even Toad—who had his own berth next to Oliver. The new engines were both black tender engines, and they were about half a foot taller and longer than Michaela.

As she moved onto the turntable, Duck looked over at the engines and said, "Oh, here's the engine I was telling you about. Michaela, that last berth on the left is for you."

The iridescent engine hoped that Duck hadn't said anything bad about her, but the welcoming smiles on all the engines' faces calmed her fears. As Michaela settled into her berth, she looked over at the tender engines (while avoiding eye contact) and suddenly realized that they were identical.

"What…!" she blurted out. "You… you two look exactly the same! How is that possible?"

The one closest to her smiled. "Aye, well, mah brother an' ah are identical twins, we are! Ah'm Douglas, an' this is Donald."

Michaela noticed that the way he spoke was a little different from most people she knew, and the few that she had heard speaking like that were some of the engines and most of the workers back at the factory where she had been built.

"Where are you from?" she asked, trying to pluck up enough courage to have a conversation.

Donald responded this time. "Douggie an' ah are from Bonnie Scotland. We lived there fer fifty years, an' we still think o' it as our beloved home, even after all this time…"

Michaela struggled to understand the first half of what he had said, but she sensed nostalgia in his voice and didn't want to ruin the moment, so she pretended that she had understood what he had said. "Oh, okay…" Then, lowering her voice so only her driver could hear, she asked, "Where?"

Her driver looked up from checking her over before he and the fireman left for the night. "He said they're from Scotland."

"Where's that?"

He facepalmed. "Michaela, you're from Scotland."

The iridescent engine's jaw dropped. "Wait, what?!"

"Whit is it, lassie?" one of the twins asked.

"My driver says that I'm from Scotland too!"

"It's where you were built. We traveled all the way here from Edinburgh," put in Michaela's driver.

"Ye dinnae say? Whit was it like there?" asked Douglas.

Michaela scrunched up her face as she thought. "Well, there was a lot of green, and I quite liked that… green grass and plants, that is. There were lots of kids that would run alongside the tracks and wave as we went by, and everybody there was so friendly… well, almost everybody. I remember that some of the engines in the factory weren't very nice to me…"

Donald frowned. "Ah'm sorry tae hear tha'. Well, jist ken tha' yer in good hands now, an' most o' th' engines on th' Island of Sodor are verra friendly."

Her driver quietly translated what the Scottish engine had said after she gave him a puzzled look, and Michaela recalled that her first acquaintance—was her name Rebecca?—had said something similar about the other engines.

After a few seconds had gone by in silence, Duck spoke up, and Michaela jumped, having forgotten that he was even there. "Well, it's getting late now, and we all have a busy day tomorrow, so let's get some sleep. Good night, everybody. Good night, Michaela."

Everybody said good night to each other and drifted off to sleep, one by one, but the iridescent engine stayed up for a few more minutes and watched her driver and fireman leave.

Michaela thought back on her time at the factory in Edinburgh and pondered her current circumstances as she recalled the day she had left for the Island of Sodor.

Someone knocked on the engine factory manager's door, and he looked up from his computer. "Come in."

The door opened, and a young, brown-haired man entered the room. "Excuse me, sir. I was told to speak to you about being assigned an engine."

The manager stood. "Oh, yes. You must be Kennet Woodhouse. I'm Mr. Lawson, the manager of this factory."

The two men shook hands, and they sat down to discuss Kennet's new engine that he was to drive.

"The engine I've decided to assign you to is an iridescent tender engine—Number 16, otherwise known as Michaela. You will meet her shortly, but before you do… there is something I must tell you about her."

The soon-to-be driver leaned forward in his seat. "Okay…"

Mr. Lawson continued. "Michaela is… mentally different from the other engines."

Kennet's brow furrowed. "'Different?"

"She sometimes exhibits behavior that our other engines do not. For instance, if Michaela hears a loud noise or is touched in the slightest without warning, she yelps or whimpers, and tightly closes her eyes. And according to the workers that built her, she also seems to prefer avoiding eye contact with other people."

"Oh… Have you been able to figure out why?"

Mr. Lawson shook his head. "Had I noticed these symptoms a few weeks earlier, I would have had a psychologist come in and evaluate her, but I was actually only just recently informed of her odd behavior."

Kennet nodded. "Perhaps I can speak to the controller of the railway that we are going to work on and ask him about an evaluation."

"Perhaps… Oh, that reminds me." Mr. Lawson reached into his desk and pulled out an envelope. "The instructions inside this envelope will tell you what your assigned railway and controller are. If you'd like, I can show you to Michaela right now."

"Of course." Kennet stood and followed the manager to the door. "Is there anything else I should know about her?"

Mr. Lawson paused as he opened the door and looked thoughtful for a moment. "...As strange as she may seem, Michaela has a kind heart and is very empathetic. She shouldn't give you or anybody else any trouble on purpose."

Kennet nodded and followed the manager out the door.

Michaela sat on a track inside of the factory, rocking from side to side and humming softly. She liked doing this—it helped her to stay calm. Especially when the other engines were making it really hard for her to feel that way.

"What's wrong with her?" an engine nearby whispered to another one.

The second train snorted. "Oh, you don't have to whisper. She can't even tell what we're saying, anyways."

Michaela frowned and hummed a little louder to try and focus on something else, but it was still pretty hard trying not to focus on the two engines that were gossiping about her.

"Are you sure?" asked the first steam train.

"Uh-huh. She's one of those engines. I have an older brother that I sometimes see doing his jobs outside, and he's like that, too."

"Ohh." The first engine stole a glance at Michaela. "What do you think she's thinking about?"

"Probably nothing." The next words that came out of the engine's mouth were the ones to finally crush the iridescent tender engine's heart. "It's like she doesn't care about anything. Or anyone."

Then the engines' new drivers arrived, and the two steamies puffed out of the factory, leaving a teary-eyed Michaela to her corner of the building, the second engine's words still echoing in her mind.

"She can't even tell what we're saying, anyways." "She's one of those engines." "It's almost like she doesn't care about anything. Or anyone."

Michaela's lips trembled, and she murmured, "But I do care…"

Just as she started to cry, the factory manager and a man she'd never seen before walked up to her. "Michaela, why are you crying?"

The iridescent engine sniffled and tried to stop more tears from flowing. "Oh, n-n-nothing, Mr. Lawson… I just… I-I…" She sniffed once more, long and loud. "I'll b-be fine."

And Michaela tried to smile, but it was obvious that she wasn't going to be "fine" for the next five minutes or so.

Mr. Lawson stared at her for a moment. "...I see." He motioned to the man standing next to him. "Uh, this is Kennet Woodhouse, your new driver. You two will be heading off for your new job today."

Michaela gasped. So soon? Why, she'd only been completed nearly a week ago!

The two men spoke for a few more minutes, then they shook hands, and the manager of the factory left the room.

Kennet climbed up into Michaela's cab. "We'll just wait another minute or so for your fireman to show up, and then we'll leave."

"Okay."

Silence.

The new driver finally spoke up again after a minute had passed. "So… you wanna talk about it?"

"About what?"

"Why were you crying when we first came over to you?"

"Oh… that." Michaela closed her eyes and sighed. "...Some engines are just quick to judge others before they even get to know them… that's all."

"Sorry to hear that." Kennet thought for a moment and then patted her side. "But, y'know… There are other people that aren't judgemental. I'm not. Especially of you."

The iridescent engine looked back at him. "R-really?" she asked.

He nodded. "You're my engine now. Or kind of, anyways. When I first told my father that I was studying to become a train driver, he gave me some advice, and told me that I should treat my engine with respect and always look for the best in them."

"It sounds like you have a nice dad…" Michaela replied.

"He is," Kennet agreed. "And I've tried to follow his advice, even going as far as treating all the other engines that I've met in my life the same way that Dad told me to treat you. And not just the engines, but people too."

"...Maybe I should try to do that."

"Honestly, I think the world would be a better place if we all did."

"Me too," Michaela replied. And for the first time since earlier that morning, she smiled.

The iridescent engine opened her eyes and turned her gaze onto her new friends, Duck, Oliver, Toad, Donald, and Douglas. After a moment of thought, she hummed with content and closed her eyes again, ready to go to sleep.

Michaela's new friends were certainly much nicer than the engines who had said those toxic things about her. Maybe she really could get used to her new home on the Island of Sodor.